Montana rebranded as Brancott

Pernod Ricard is relaunching its Montana New Zealand wine brand as Brancott Estate and has signed a deal for the brand to be an official sponsor of the 2011 rugby union World Cup.

The new name refers to the vineyard where the brand first grew Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc in 1973.

The change will take effect globally from October to coincide with the roll-out of the 2010 vintage.

The decision to change the name of the number two New Zealand brand in the UK was “strongly endorsed by extensive global consumer insight and research”, said Simon Thomas, Pernod Ricard UK’s deputy managing director for wines.

The move will be supported by a doubling of marketing investment in the brand, including a continuation of its TV ad campaign, which first referred to the name Brancott in March.

Thomas said: “Brancott Estate allows us to take the brand back to its New Zealand roots in a way that emphasises its heritage, provenance and authenticity – something we haven’t previously fully leveraged and yet is highly appealing to consumers.”

The wine itself will remain unchanged. A gradual transition of packaging will retain the current label design with a Montana reference at the base of the bottle until consumers are familiar with the new name.

Montana is already known as Brancott in the US, although this will change to Brancott Estate to create a global brand.

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